SKILLED SCHOLARS
Catherine Mathewson won gold in the car painting segment at the 2019 Skills Ontario regional competition, as well as in the 2019 Skills Canada national competition. Nicole Sheetka and Carrie Long claimed silver and bronze, respectively.
CONTINUED COMMITMENT Sam Piercey Foundation announces annual bursary recipients BY GIDEON SCANLON
T
he Sam Piercey Foundation recently announced the recipients of its annual bursaries. The prizes are awarded to the winners of Skills Canada competitions to fund post-secondary training in the collision industry. This year’s awards were funded by Consolidated Dealers and Budds’ Collision. Each of the winners receives an $800 bursary administered by Skills Canada, by way of the Sam Piercey Foundation. “When the opportunity presented itself, we jumped at the chance to contribute on behalf of the CCS Network and Consolidated Dealers,” says Mike Beier, of Consolidated Dealers. “Sam was a friend, mentor and influence in the lives of many in our industry and we are proud to support his continued legacy through the Foundation.” “The foundation and these bursaries demonstrate our continued commitment to developing new people and bringing them in to the industry. We are looking forward to many more years of supporting young talent in collision repair,” says JR Martino of the continued commitment from Budds’ Collision in Oakville, Ontario.
The foundation is named in honour of the late Sam Piercey, the co-owner of Budds’ Collision and Paint Services in Oakville, Ontario and a longtime columnist for Collision Repair. Both in-person and in his column, Point Blank, Piercey was a passionate advocate of the industry and its tradespeople. The Sam Piercey Foundation is seeking provincial partnerships to fund bursaries in each of the other Canadian Provinces where the competitions are held. In addition to the funds provided by the bursary partners named above the Foundation also raises funds at the annual pig roast held in December at Budds’ Collision in Oakville, Ontario. The date of this year’s BBQ hasn’t been announced yet. The event is open to everyone in the industry. If you would like to be included on the invite list please email J.R. Martino at jrmartino@buddscollision.com. For inquiries about the foundation or to fund a provincial bursary please email Bing Wong at bwong@hailrepair.ca. To find out more, visit the Sam Piercey Foundation’s website at spfoundation.ca.
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National Skills Competitions: Bursary funded by Consolidated Dealers and Budds’ Collision
Car Painting winners: • Post Secondary — Gold: Catherine Mathewson, Ont. • Secondary — Gold: Jas Dhillon, Alta.
Auto Body winners: • Post Secondary — Gold: Borden Ylioja, Sask. • Secondary — Gold: Keegan Watkins-McIntyre, Man.